Disbursement Policy

Official Disbursement Policy

The Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships uses the following disbursement policy for student financial aid every term of the academic year. Be advised that financial aid awards will not pay for students whose PSU enrollment does not match the enrollment at which they were awarded.

Official Enrollment Levels | Your enrollment level for financial aid purposes is the same as your enrollment level with the Registrar's Office which is based on your student type. If you are not sure about your enrollment, please consult the chart below: (Note: The chart below applies to all terms, including Summer)

Student Level

Full time

3/4 time

Half time

Less than 1/2 time

Undergraduate

12 +

9-11

6-8

1-5

Post-baccalaureate

12 +

9-11

6-8

1-5

Graduate

9 +

N/A

5-8

1-4

DISBURSEMENT POLICY SUMMARY

Aid disbursement begins 10 calendar days before the beginning of each term for students whose registration matches their award and who have met all other aid eligibility requirements.

The Census Date is at the end of the second week of each term. This Census Date is used for all terms, including summer session.

Financial aid for the term will be adjusted to reflect the student's official enrolled credits as of the Census Date. That is, if the student received aid at the beginning of the term that was calculated for full-time enrollment, or the student was enrolled full-time and then dropped credits, aid will be revised to match their eligibility based on the number of credits enrolled as of the Census Date.

When a reduction in aid is required due to a student's official enrollment level on the Census Date, the reduction usually creates a balance due on the student's PSU account. If there is a tuition refund because of dropping credits, the tuition refund will be used to reduce the balance due on the student's account.

A student whose Census Date enrollment is less than half-time is not eligible for any federal student loans. In these cases, the entire loan amount for the term will be returned. The return of loan funds will create a bill on the student's PSU account, but also reduces the outstanding principal balance due on the student loan.

Any current term financial aid disbursed after the Census Date will be based on the student's official enrollment on the Census Date or their actual number of credits enrolled at the time of disbursement, whichever is LESS. Credits added after the Census Date cannot be used to increase aid eligibility.

Retroactive aid (aid for a term that has ended prior to disbursement) must be disbursed based on completed grades/credits, or Census Date registration, whichever is LESS. This includes retroactive grants and loans. Grades that are considered "complete" are: A, B, C, D, P, I or IP.

Disbursement of Loan Funds After a Term Ends

To receive loan funds after a term ends, the student must successfully complete a minimum of half-time credits for the previous term(s). If the loan period included both the prior term and the current term, the student also must be enrolled a minimum of half-time in the current term to be eligible for any loan disbursement.

If the student is receiving a loan for just one term (e.g., fall term only), the financial aid award must have been offered and accepted before the end of that term. Federal regulations mandate that a loan for a term that has already ended can be certified only if the student is currently enrolled at least half-time and there has been no gap in enrollment.

Minimum Enrollment Requirements

The chart below shows the minimum enrollment required to be eligible for each fund type. For a disbursement to occur to a student's account, their enrollment must also match the enrollment for which they are awarded.